India ranks number one globally in digital real-time payments, holding a 49% market share with over 129 billion transactions in 2023, according to PI B reports. The UPI (Unified Payments Interface) system, driving this growth, processes over 18 billion monthly transactions, far exceeding other nations.
Today, among all countries in the world, India is the country with the highest digital transaction, accounting for nearly 46% share, as per the 2022 data.
1 in digital payments? India has emerged as the global leader in fast payments, according to a recent note by the International Monetary Fund. This is primarily driven by the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which processes billions of transactions monthly.
PayU is one of the leading online payment gateways in India & has empowered 5 lakh+ businesses so far. It enables businesses to collect digital payments across 150+ online payment methods such as Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Net Banking, EMIs, BNPL, QR, UPI, Wallets, and more.
Top digital wallets around the world
Globally, the most widely used digital wallet brands include Alipay, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal. Apart from Alipay, these global wallets represent vehicles for card-on-file and tokenized card transactions, a digital evolution of credit and debit card payments.
With an astonishing over 129 billion transactions processed and a commanding 49 per cent share of global real-time digital payments, UPI has secured the No. 1 position worldwide, firmly placing India at the forefront of the global fintech revolution.
Unified Payment Interface (UPI) was developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) which was established by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian Banks Association (IBA). It enables real time, person to merchant transactions, inter-bank peer to peer transactions.
What is the main payment method in India? The Indian digital payment ecosystem has been revolutionized by UPI (Unified Payments Interface), a real-time payment system that allows users to make QR code payments and P2P transfers via apps like PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm.
India's UPI ecosystem continues to redefine digital payments — clocking billions of transactions every month. And leading the charge are a few giants who dominate the space. PhonePe reigns supreme with 8.96 Bn transactions, followed by Google Pay at 6.83 Bn and Paytm at 1.39 Bn.
If your customers commonly use UPI, PhonePe might be a more suitable choice. If you need support for various payment methods, including credit cards and net banking, Razorpay offers a broader range.
Cards and cashless payments are the primary payment methods in the USA. Although cash is slowly becoming less common, it's still wise to carry a small amount to be prepared for any situation.
Unified Payment Interface (UPI) is currently accepted in eight countries— Bhutan, Singapore, Qatar, Mauritius, Nepal, UAE, Sri Lanka and France. Acceptability of India's digital payment network overseas enables Indian tourists to make UPI payments for transactions abroad.
Google Pay Usage Either for Online Payments in Various Countries in 2023. As of Julay 2023, the largest number of people making online payments using Google Pay live in India (77%). In second and third place are Poland and the United States. 38% of Poles and 31% of Americans make online payments using Google Pay.
Sweden has emerged as the world's first cashless nation, with phone taps and cards replacing physical money. This digital shift, driven by apps like Swish, simplifies transactions for locals and tourists alike. While most establishments accept digital payments, carrying some cash is advised for smaller vendors.
According to the State of India's Digital Economy Report 2024, India is the third largest digitalised country in the world in terms of economy-wide digitalization, and 12th among the G20 countries in the level of digitalisation of individual users.
Four common types of digital money are Cryptocurrencies, Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), Virtual Currencies, and Stablecoins, each differing in decentralization, backing, and purpose, from Bitcoin's decentralized nature to stablecoins pegged to real assets, with CBDCs representing a digital form of national currency.
3: BHIM UPI has the added advantage of being backed by the government, so it is regarded as safer and secure compared to Google Pay. Though Google Pay has enhanced security features like biometric authentication as well as PIN or pattern, extensive data syncing makes it less secure.
Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is an Indian instant payment system and protocol developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in 2016.
It uses USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) technology, which works on basic phones too. This service helps people across India do banking just by dialling *99# from their mobile.
1. India. India lists amongst the world's top 10 countries for digital payments as it boasts a number of apps that perform well in terms of digital payments. India's digital payment march was started by companies like Paytm and Google Pay.
This was highlighted in the PIB release: Foreign nationals and NRIs visiting India can make payments using UPI. Additionally, NPCI introduced UPI ONE WORLD, a solution for inbound travellers that enables them to pay Indian merchants using a prepaid wallet funded by their international debit/credit cards.
Yes, UPI payments are considered secure. They utilize encryption and mandatory UPI PIN verification, often coupled with two-factor authentication, to prevent unauthorized transactions. The system is regulated by NPCI under RBI guidelines, ensuring security standards are met.
UPI is better for instant, everyday payments like sending money to friends, scanning QR codes, or paying at local shops. On the other hand, Net Banking is better for managing your full bank account—you can transfer large amounts, schedule payments, and even open FDs or apply for loans.
As of 2025, India has over 65 million active merchants on UPI, making it the largest digital payments network in the world.
Nandan Nilekani played a key role in the development of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a system that revolutionized digital payments in India.